Chapter 117: A good thing?
Carmen
Yes, you guessed right. After we were done with the study, we headed straight to his room.
The sex was good.
Too good.
Good enough that neither of us wanted it to end.
I lay there trying to steady my breathing while Nico remained pressed against me, his arm still lazily wrapped around my waist like he had no intention of moving anytime soon. My legs already felt weak enough that I doubted I could even walk back to my room properly.
"You’re good?" he whispered near my ear.
I frowned immediately.
That tone irritated me more than it should have.
We weren’t lovers.
We weren’t anything close to that.
We were simply two people who enjoyed what we could get from each other physically. That was all.
I felt him finally pull away before dropping onto the bed beside me with a long sigh of satisfaction.
I shut my eyes, exhausted enough that sleep threatened to drag me under instantly. I only planned to rest for a little while before leaving.
Then Nico spoke again.
"Are you still talking to Aran?"
That made me pause.
I didn’t bother opening my eyes.
"I can talk to whoever I want."
Silence followed briefly before he sighed.
"Aran is dangerous."
"Only Aran?" I muttered.
That finally made me open my eyes to look at him.
Nico was staring up at the ceiling, jaw tight. The irony of him warning me about dangerous people was almost laughable.
"You know what I mean, Carmen," he said. "We need to stick together."
I turned slightly toward him.
"...This isn’t close enough for you?"
I glanced deliberately at the tiny space between us on the bed. One movement was enough to throw me directly back into his arms.
A faint frown appeared on his face.
"We can’t trust anyone," he continued slowly. "We need to take control of the North completely and push Bianca out. Which means if we can’t find the real killer soon enough..." his eyes finally met mine, "...we may need to give everyone someone else to blame."
I understood immediately.
Frame someone believable.
At least publicly.
"Changing the will," I said thoughtfully. "That was mostly so you wouldn’t have to directly fight Bianca, right?"
His expression barely changed.
"...You don’t want to fight her?"
Nico rolled onto his side to face me properly.
"She has a backer," he replied quietly. "We don’t want to move against her unless it becomes necessary."
I shrugged slightly, staring at the ceiling again.
Personally, I didn’t think Bianca cared anymore about avoiding conflict. She clearly had no intention of giving up the companies under her control.
She would fight viciously before surrendering any of it.
"...You do know more people are going to come looking for the mivite," I pointed out. "Especially after more deposits were discovered."
Nico had already started applying for contracts to build excavation rigs using businesses connected to both our names. He intended to move ahead of everyone else while cutting competitors off completely.
"We can share," I told him again. "I don’t see why we need to make ourselves targets."
He looked at me like I had said something ridiculous.
"And that," he murmured, "is where you’re wrong."
I narrowed my eyes.
"You might be willing to share, Carmen. Do you really think everyone else is?"
I glared at him.
That only seemed to amuse him because he reached over to cup my face lightly.
I almost slapped his hand away.
I truly wasn’t in the mood.
"We’re not continuing," I told him directly.
One eyebrow rose.
"Did I say we should?"
The problem was the way he kept staring at me.
Like he was trying to read something from my face.
It became unbearable after a few seconds.
I moved to get up, but Nico immediately grabbed my waist and pulled me back onto the bed while one of his legs wrapped around mine.
"Stay the night."
I blinked at him in surprise.
The amusement in his eyes deepened.
"It’s just one night."
But we both knew it wasn’t.
"We’re just sex partners," I reminded him firmly.
"Exclusive sex partners," he corrected without hesitation.
I stared at him in disbelief.
The confidence this man carried around truly needed to be studied.
I tried pushing his arm away again.
"If you don’t want me to leave, you might as well beg like a normal person."
I expected sarcasm.
Or teasing.
Instead, Nico looked at me for a long second before speaking quietly.
"Please, Carmen. Stay the night."
My head turned sharply toward him.
The tiredness in his voice startled me enough that I genuinely wondered if he was sick.
Nico didn’t ask for things softly.
Ever.
Yet now he was staring at me with exhausted eyes, waiting patiently for my answer.
And somehow...
I stayed.
Unfortunately, the night became far more eventful than I would have liked.
At some point during the night, Nico practically dragged me against him in his sleep, and every time I attempted moving away, he pulled me back without even waking properly.
By morning, I was irritated enough to leave immediately.
The spot beside me was already empty when I opened my eyes properly.
Not surprising.
Nico had probably disappeared into his study hours ago.
I returned to my room and took a quick bath before dressing in black pants and a black shirt. I didn’t have the patience to think too much about clothes today.
My mind was already occupied.
One of my company managers had been acting recklessly for months now, badly enough that he was close to ruining the entire branch.
I had delayed dealing with it personally for too long.
Mostly because of my time in the hospital and I hated going there. Too many greedy people. Too many unnecessary problems.
I grabbed my phone and headed out of my room.
The mansion remained unusually quiet despite the guards standing at nearly every corner. Security had increased drastically these past few weeks, and honestly, I was beginning to get tired of constantly being watched.
I had barely reached the entrance when Nico’s voice stopped me.
"You’re actually going out?"
I turned.
He stood near the staircase dressed simply in dark pants and a gray shirt, his suit jacket hanging over one shoulder.
"You sound surprised," I replied.
"I am surprised."
He walked closer, eyes scanning me briefly before settling on my face.
"Do you really have to go today?"
That question made me pause.
Because truthfully...
No.
I didn’t want to go anywhere today. Not with everything happening around us.
But responsibilities didn’t disappear simply because I was tired and a bit scared.
"I don’t have a choice," I answered. "If I leave that company under my managers control any longer, he’ll destroy it completely."
"How bad is it?"
"He approved contracts without authorization, lost clients, and somehow created problems with the board members."
Nico stared at me briefly before snorting softly.
"That’s almost impressive. Clearly he wants you to show up" he said and I understood what he meant.
"I’m trying not to kill him."
"That’s fair."
I started toward the entrance again before noticing the number of guards already waiting outside.
Far too many.
I frowned instantly.
"Why are there so many?"
"Security recommendation," Nico answered calmly.
"For me?"
"For you."
"That’s excessive."
The moment I stepped outside, several guards immediately moved into position around us automatically.
It felt suffocating.
I reached for the car door, already wanting this entire day to end before it had even started.
Then Nico spoke again.
"I’ll come with you."
I turned so quickly I nearly thought I heard him wrong.
"You?"
"Yes."
I stared openly now.
"Nico, you hate inspections."
"I hate incompetent people more." A smile tugging on his lips.
"That company isn’t even under your division."
"And?"
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously.
"What exactly are you planning?"
His mouth twitched slightly.
"Maybe I’m bored."
"That’s terrifying."
Ignoring me completely, he took the keys from one of the guards before opening the passenger door himself.
Even the guards looked uncomfortable seeing it.
"You’re acting strange again," I told him.
"You said that yesterday too."
"Because it’s still true."
"Get in the car, Carmen."
I should have refused.
Honestly, I considered it for a second.
But eventually, I slid into the passenger seat with a quiet sigh.
Nico shut the door before walking around to the driver’s side.
The convoy behind us immediately started moving too.
I glanced at the line of black vehicles through the mirror.
"This looks ridiculous."
"It looks safe."
"That’s debatable."
He glanced at me briefly before starting the car.
Silence settled between us for a few moments.
Not uncomfortable.
Just heavy.
Then unexpectedly, Nico spoke.
"You really stayed."
I frowned instantly.
"You begged."
A low laugh escaped him.
"That bad?"
"It was disturbing."
He laughed again, this time properly, and I found myself staring at him suspiciously.
Nico noticed immediately.
"What?"
"You’re in a strangely good mood."
"Maybe I slept well."
I snorted softly.
"That’s impossible. You barely sleep."
"Maybe you’re good for my health."
I groaned immediately.
"There he is," I muttered. "I was wondering where the annoying version of you went."
His grin widened slightly as the car pulled away from the estate gates.
And despite myself...
Despite how complicated everything around us had become...
I felt some of the tension in my shoulders ease just a little. Regardless of who he was to others, Nico by my side made me feel safe and I wasn’t sure whether or not that was a good thing.
Since there was nothing as blinding as trust!
